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In December 2015, Chad Myers and his wife Shawndalyn set out to solve a problem: They both wanted to carry concealed handguns, but many of the holsters designed to hold the guns were notoriously unreliable. Typically hooked to a waistband with a clip, they can fall off and fall down your pants, Chad noted.

Chad, a leader on the manufacturing line at a nearby Coca-Cola factory, set out to make his own holsters out of fine leather and magnets in the garage in their home in Abilene, Texas.

They liked the holsters so much that they decided to file for patents, buy inventory for gun shows, and put up a web site. Shawndalyn had been doing direct marketing to bring in extra cash in addition to her job at a nonprofit, so she had some social media skills.

But the investment was a big deal: The parents of four boys between them, they’d been saving that $9,000 for a house.

“I had my doubts, but I prayed a lot,” said Chad. “I did too,” said Shawndalyn.

They found a leather-working company a couple of hours away, sending the owner a video.

Myers was surprised when the manufacturer returned his email. “You’ve got something here,” he said, and agreed to make about $1,500 worth of inventory.

By the end of 2016, they had $1 million in sales. By the end of 2018, with the introduction of another line of plastic, leather-lined holsters, they estimate their company, JM4 Tactical, may hit $3 million in sales.

Growing Market, Political Battleground

The Myers, it turned out, tapped into a growing market. In 2011, the Government Accountability Office estimated, there had been 8 million concealed carry permits issued. Other sources I found suggest the number has climbed into the 12 million range since then. The laws vary a lot, so that someone licensed to carry a concealed weapon in Texas might not be in San Francisco, but have generally been growing less restrictive across the country. A bill working its way through Congress would mean that a citizen carrying under the laws of his or her own state could carry across state lines or into cities where the laws are different.

Proponents of concealed carry laws say that in a society where guns are already common and sometimes fall into the hands of criminals, citizens need to be able to protect themselves with guns. Those who oppose them worry that less restrictive conceal carry laws will lead to more guns in the United States, and more guns means more lethal violence (though not necessarily more violent crime). Allowing more guns in the hands of citizens essentially takes the onus off the government – which then has less responsibility to protect citizens, some argue.

Big public health studies are unclear about whether conceal carry laws have an impact on violent crime, according to David Hemenway, Harvard School of Public Health professor, in his book Private Guns Public Health, but the best studies suggest that violent crime rates rise slightly when more people are carrying.

The key advance in their holster was that it works via magnets, to hold a much as 18 pounds firmly on the waistband of an article of clothing. The magnets also hold the gun in place, but just enough so that it’s easy to pull it out if you need it, the Myers said.

Different sizes and versions of the holster cost from $49.95 to $94. They are made from Hermann Oak leather (Hermann Oak is a storied St. Louis-based tannery). Some much less expensive holsters are so thin they are even known to get twisted into the trigger of a gun, Chad noted.

“This holster wasn’t built to be on the market, so it was built right,” said Chad. “We had to figure out the different thicknesses of leather and the magnetic retention.”

The couple still feels stunned by their success, though proud that they have created 26 jobs, 20 at the manufacturer where they outsource, and six employed by JM4 Tactical.

Chad quit his job in December 2016 – before that, he had been working nights, six days a week. Shawndalyn still works at the nonprofit, New Horizons. They bought a truck, to take them to the NRA convention, among other places, and – they feel particular satisfaction in this -- they’ve bought a new home. They’d cashed out their home savings to start the company, and then for two years couldn’t finance a home because they were so recently business owners.

With four bedrooms, it’s about 2,200 square feet, they say, “nothing fancy.”